Putting Sleep First

I have a goal this year: to sleep.

I’ve been haunted for months by an urgent feeling that I need to sleep more. As mentioned in a previous post, Jamie and I prayed to know how to know God better and felt to change our diet. Then, when I prayed to know what to do next to know Him more, I felt on multiple occasions that I needed to sleep more.

I knew the scriptures say, “Retire to thy bed early, that ye may not be weary; arise early, that your bodies and your minds may be invigorated” (Doctrine & Covenants 88:124). I wanted to have an invigorated mind that could more easily perceive God’s influence but here’s the rub—some research is showing that everyone needs a certain amount of sleep each night and, if you get behind, you have to make it up! (see sources here and here and here). I knew I was really behind, like hundreds or maybe even thousands of hours behind. I was so intimidated by the idea of making up all that sleep that I didn’t know where to start.

When the new year came around, I decided it was time to finally do it somehow. I set a goal to get 3,000 hours of sleep during 2017. That means I would get an average of 8 hours / night (which seems to be how much I need) plus an extra 80 hours throughout the year that would make some kind of dent on the massive sleep debt I’ve incurred. I track my sleep each week toward the yearly number.

After three weeks of trying this goal, I’ve slept an an average of 8 hours per night plus an extra five and I’ve learned some important things. First of all, I am less weary and my mind and body are definitely more invigorated. It is much easier to think and love and believe and be engaged in people and tasks that matter. I’m a better dad, more able to play and help out. It’s wonderful!

Having a goal to get a certain number of hours of sleep has proven very useful to actually getting sleep. One of the main things that was keeping me from getting to bed when I should was a desire to accomplish goals and tasks. There were all sorts of things I felt like I needed to get done and I’d sacrifice sleep to do them. By making getting sleep one of my most urgent goals, I find it easier to choose not to do many things in order to go to bed.

This has had an unexpected bonus: it helps me live more simply and prioritize the most important things. Life feels more significant and holy. There are lots of things that I used to think were important that I simply choose not to do now because there simply isn’t time to do them in the waking hours I’ve allotted myself. As I prioritize other things which are incredibly important—in particular sacred things such as the time I give to God, my family, and other people—a sense of increased holiness and consecration accompanies my life.

I found a verse in Psalms this week that articulates another unexpected advantage of prioritizing sleep. Psalm 127 talks about how guards who watched ancient cities did so in vain unless they involved the Lord in the process. It says, “...Except the Lord keep the city, the watchman taketh but in vain. It is vain for you to rise up early, to sit up late, to eat the bread of sorrows; for so he giveth his beloved sleep.” This verse says to me that as I simply make time to sleep instead of doing things I think I need to get done, I have to trust in Christ’s grace to help many things work out and that is good.

Sleep is good. I highly recommend it.